The Anti Sully letter being sent to TAMU donors.

17,435 Views | 139 Replies | Last: 3 yr ago by PabloSerna
PabloSerna
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CanyonAg77

I have screen grabs - it was mean spirited and a shot across the bow. No other way to take it.

Dystopian? I think that says it all.
monarch
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S
Sorry; time to watch Korean baseball.
Squadron7
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Quote:

Texas is changing right before our eyes.

I guess when we fill hotels up with hobos and have to step over needles and feces in the street we will have really arrived.
oldcrow91
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Champ Bailey said:

TChaney said:




There is no way that's real, right?


100% legit. I just saw it on the interwebs.
Tanya 93
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PabloSerna said:

Tanya 93 said:

PabloSerna said:

No - a few bad apples.

I read a recent article in ESPN by students at the University of Mississippi that changed my mind. Basically, its about the future and what a place like TAMU can be - to the next generation of Texans.

Texas is changing right before our eyes.

+pablo

Is it for the good?

I don't think A&M changing the way it is right now is for the good.

And I was someone who spent 4 years protesting things on that campus.

But we never wanted to change the actual goodness Aggies had towards each other.
The hate and life destruction from people who support what you support was never a goal. I could be the only chick and only non-Republican and non Corps member in a Poli Sci class and never have a worry. They would walk me to my truck after hours of working on group projects.

Trying to harm my future because I voted for Bill Clinton was dishonorable. It never would have crossed their minds.

These asshats now think nothing about it and then cry when someone else gives the same treatment.

Moving Sully means it is gone from campus. You want to play a character on 16 without realizing the hate and awfulness name caller and Keebler Elf have. He can't stay anywhere on campus. Are you coming Sunday to protest with them? Maybe you can see exactly how ugly and hateful and awful these demons are.
Character? My name is on everything I write. That is about as honest as I can be with y'all.

I have been to the protests and have spoken to the students. From where I stand, the truth is somewhere in the middle. I'm not sure who this elf is you are reffering to, but I suspect the good professor? To me, he is doing what professors do - they challenge you. For some of us - we will dig in. For others - maybe that's me, I did not know - and that is where we take it from there. I believe LSR needs a new spot with more context.

A&M is changing. Mainly because the people of Texas are changing. Look at the public schools. I filled out our census and let's see where the chips fall. I have a feeling - the A&M you and I attended will be more multi-cultural down the road. Some here would say - for the worse? I have more hope in the younger generation, maybe because I work with a lot of youth in the Bastrop area and have my own kids heading to college.


+pablo

The Keebler Elf is a ***** student who doxxes people in an effort to get them thrown out of A&M and then makes lying, racist, bigoted posts on twitter and Instagram about fellow Aggies who disagree with her politically. Name caller is a racist who thinks all black people have to think like her and if you disagree with her political positions, you are a racist

These are the leaders of the movement you support.

Bigots, racists, and demons
Deputy Travis Junior
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Jesus H Christ, I remember when I first discovered Scott Pakin's rant generator too.
DifferenceMaker Ag
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If you have to construct a 20,000 word essay on why something should be done against the will of 90% on the issue, then there's a better than average chance that you have no justification to do what you are proposing to do.

Basically, Sully's dad was also a great man, to a fault, but he owned a slave after he was married. Therefore, combined with the misdeeds of Sully himself, the decision to remove the statue is now a slam dunk. Case closed.

Not Another DIME!!
CanyonAg77
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And there we have it. Somehow, you think multi-cultural is better. No, that would be the Balkans, where they've been killing each other for 1000 years.

We prefer the melting pot. Come from all over Texas and the world, and be an Aggie, not an unhappy agitator
CanyonAg77
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PabloSerna said:

CanyonAg77

I have screen grabs - it was mean spirited and a shot across the bow. No other way to take it.

Dystopian? I think that says it all.

And they were all public info. I knew it weeks before it was on here.
texagbeliever
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Pablo's issues and to a larger extent Alvaid's and others can best be pointed out as a fundamental issue. They see the world in what i'd describe as failuristic means. A "failuristic" view is one that sees people by the worst moments and fixates on that. It is devoid of forgiveness, grace and redemption. It is also a view that only allows for one's standing in society to increase by tearing down those are them, since at the end of the day there is nothing one can do to make up for his greatest mistake. At the same time one believes those around him may try to do the very same thing to him so it is now a race to eliminate the threat.

The flaw of this "faulirstic" approach is that there is ultimately no end and really no good. Society will try turn those who are good, and thus better, bad thus lowering those good individuals to society's level. This is evident by Alvaid's case study where he tried to get students to disrespect the veterans by wearing hats in MSC or by his graphic and distasteful posts on Catholicism (bringing down the religious to be as bad or worse than him). It is evident by the doxxers trying to destroy people for one comment or statement on twitter or facebook.

I find such a way of life to be so unfulfilling and empty. Ultimately we are all in need of forgiveness, grace and a chance of redemption. Whether it is a heated moment with a friend, a coworker, family member, or some random person. The key is not to fixate that we all fail, but that we all can RISE and strive to do better. Without the rise, failure wins forever.
PabloSerna
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TChaney said:

PabloSerna said:

I recall Archbishop Fulton Sheen saying that few people truly hate the Catholic Church - most people hate what they think it is about.

Reading through the examples above - they clearly have no idea what the Catholic Church is really about. How unfortunate.

+pablo


I'm making an assumption you are Catholic. If I'm wrong I'm sorry.

I'm looking at it from a neutral standpoint and to me, especially the wording, it just speaks to me as unadulterated hatred for something. I am really curious what that looks like from a Catholic point of view.
Cradle Catholic, Atheist?, then back to the flock. Yes that would be the journey I am on.

It is nothing new. I heard as much from my professors here and abroad. I studied architecture and a recurring theme is the Church using forced labor to build these great edifices in the New World. Something about the very stones would sing praises - it was the truth that set us free and not Father so and so. Its no wonder that Liberation Theology took off in Latin America. It has nothing to do with people - it's God.

Most people would be surprised to know that Mexico still has a very anti-clerical view of the Roman Catholic Church even though something like 88% of Mexicans identify as RCC. If the RCC was so damn oppressive - why then is it so profound throughout Central and South America? It's a loaded question and probably better discussed on the R&P board.

+pablo
PabloSerna
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CanyonAg77 said:

PabloSerna said:

CanyonAg77

I have screen grabs - it was mean spirited and a shot across the bow. No other way to take it.

Dystopian? I think that says it all.

And they were all public info. I knew it weeks before it was on here.
Knowing and posting are two different things wouldn't you say?

BluHorseShu
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TChaney said:

PabloSerna said:

I recall Archbishop Fulton Sheen saying that few people truly hate the Catholic Church - most people hate what they think it is about.

Reading through the examples above - they clearly have no idea what the Catholic Church is really about. How unfortunate.

+pablo


I'm making an assumption you are Catholic. If I'm wrong I'm sorry.

I'm looking at it from a neutral standpoint and to me, especially the wording, it just speaks to me as unadulterated hatred for something. I am really curious what that looks like from a Catholic point of view.
The people who write things like that about the Catholic Church generally have only a 30K foot view of Catholicism and a deep hatred of themselves. I was a southern baptist for most of my life before joining the Catholic Church. As a Christian there was almost no difference, EXCEPT that I did find that older Catholics had alot of misunderstandings about the Church. But I digress.
Did TAMU professors who claim to want equality really write that stuff about Catholics? If so, someone needs to highlight their hypocrisy. Sounds like Alvard is saying racism is horrible, but bashing religion is perfectly fine, especially if its of the Christian variety.
P.H. Dexippus
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His performance reviews have twice called him out for disparaging student religious views. It's definitely a pattern.
Agvet12
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If the sins of our fathers are beholden to their offspring, the Dems / libs are even more racist.

They do they're advocating for more of the black population to go to prison and criminals purely based on prison stats?

Dumb is dumb
PabloSerna
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texagbeliever said:

Pablo's issues and to a larger extent Alvaid's and others can best be pointed out as a fundamental issue. They see the world in what i'd describe as failuristic means. A "failuristic" view is one that sees people by the worst moments and fixates on that. It is devoid of forgiveness, grace and redemption. It is also a view that only allows for one's standing in society to increase by tearing down those are them, since at the end of the day there is nothing Pablo can do to make up for his greatest mistake. At the same time Pablo believes those around him may try to do the very same thing to him so it is now a race to eliminate the threat.

The flaw of this "faulirstic" approach is that there is ultimately no end and really no good. Society will try turn those who are good, and thus better, bad thus lowering those good individuals to society's level. This is evident by Alvaid's case study where he tried to get students to disrespect the veterans by wearing hats in MSC or by his graphic and distasteful posts on Catholicism (bringing down the religious to be as bad or worse than him). It is evident by the doxxers trying to destroy people for one comment or statement on twitter or facebook.

I find such a way of life to be so unfulfilling and empty. Ultimately we are all in need of forgiveness, grace and a chance of redemption. Whether it is a heated moment with a friend, a coworker, family member, or some random person. The key is not to fixate that we all fail, but that we all can RISE and strive to do better. Without the rise, failure wins forever.
As a source to your claim - I would like to clarify this assumption:

I am glad you define the term "failuristic" - only because it is not where I am coming from. Understanding the "unvarnished" truth about something is not fixating on one's failure - in this case Sul Ross. I don't need to re-hatch all that LSR did to achieve the mythic status he held and still holds in Aggieland.

I am informed by my faith in all things - this is about truth. I could quote chapter and verse, but even a casual reader of scripture knows the one about "Ye shall know the truth.." In the end, it will be about freedom. From all that I have seen and read on this - some of us have lifted Sul Ross to a higher plane. It's almost as some one just wrote here - that moving the statue is destroying all that TAMU stands for. Say that out loud to a non-Aggie.

To me - TAMU will always be more than a statue. It has and will always be about us.

+pablo



Tanya 93
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PabloSerna said:

texagbeliever said:

Pablo's issues and to a larger extent Alvaid's and others can best be pointed out as a fundamental issue. They see the world in what i'd describe as failuristic means. A "failuristic" view is one that sees people by the worst moments and fixates on that. It is devoid of forgiveness, grace and redemption. It is also a view that only allows for one's standing in society to increase by tearing down those are them, since at the end of the day there is nothing Pablo can do to make up for his greatest mistake. At the same time Pablo believes those around him may try to do the very same thing to him so it is now a race to eliminate the threat.

The flaw of this "faulirstic" approach is that there is ultimately no end and really no good. Society will try turn those who are good, and thus better, bad thus lowering those good individuals to society's level. This is evident by Alvaid's case study where he tried to get students to disrespect the veterans by wearing hats in MSC or by his graphic and distasteful posts on Catholicism (bringing down the religious to be as bad or worse than him). It is evident by the doxxers trying to destroy people for one comment or statement on twitter or facebook.

I find such a way of life to be so unfulfilling and empty. Ultimately we are all in need of forgiveness, grace and a chance of redemption. Whether it is a heated moment with a friend, a coworker, family member, or some random person. The key is not to fixate that we all fail, but that we all can RISE and strive to do better. Without the rise, failure wins forever.
As a source to your claim - I would like to clarify this assumption:

I am glad you define the term "failuristic" - only because it is not where I am coming from. Understanding the "unvarnished" truth about something is not fixating on one's failure - in this case Sul Ross. I don't need to re-hatch all that LSR did to achieve the mythic status he held and still holds in Aggieland.

I am informed by my faith in all things - this is about truth. I could quote chapter and verse, but even a casual reader of scripture knows the one about "Ye shall know the truth.." In the end, it will be about freedom. From all that I have seen and read on this - some of us have lifted Sul Ross to a higher plane. It's almost as some one just wrote here - that moving the statue is destroying all that TAMU stands for. Say that out loud to a non-Aggie.

To me - TAMU will always be more than a statue. It has and will always be about us.

+pablo




Yet, it isn't about us as Aggies.

It is about the selfish me me me of certain people who need national attention so they can pretend they are like Mizzou 5 years ago.

But they aren't as smart or educated as that young man.

You can claim you have met them, but you haven't really. These leaders want to destroy A&M and rebuild it into what they want. Something A&M was never meant to be.

PabloSerna
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Tanya 93 - for me this will always be about the bigger picture.
Tanya 93
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PabloSerna said:

Tanya 93 - for me this will always be about the bigger picture.
Too bad that isn't what the horrible people you support think it should be about

Have a good night. I already know where you want to head this and I am not getting flagged for pointing out the reality you refuse to see.
Rapier108
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CanyonAg77 said:

Alvard writes something or
Alvard places something
Alvard takes a photo of it
Alvard posts it to social media
Alvard makes false claim: "look what I found"

Why he thinks this is cute or funny or effective, I have no idea
It's not like he is a deep thinker.
"If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without blood shed; if you will not fight when your victory is sure and not too costly; you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves." - Sir Winston Churchill
Hubert J. Farnsworth
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He claims in that mess of words that A&M was founded by Matthew Gaines.
CanyonAg77
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PabloSerna said:

CanyonAg77 said:

PabloSerna said:

CanyonAg77

I have screen grabs - it was mean spirited and a shot across the bow. No other way to take it.

Dystopian? I think that says it all.

And they were all public info. I knew it weeks before it was on here.
Knowing and posting are two different things wouldn't you say?


Well, you did post them yourself, so....
Sleepnumber
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TChaney said:

PabloSerna said:

I recall Archbishop Fulton Sheen saying that few people truly hate the Catholic Church - most people hate what they think it is about.

Reading through the examples above - they clearly have no idea what the Catholic Church is really about. How unfortunate.

+pablo


I'm making an assumption you are Catholic. If I'm wrong I'm sorry.

I'm looking at it from a neutral standpoint and to me, especially the wording, it just speaks to me as unadulterated hatred for something. I am really curious what that looks like from a Catholic point of view.
It looks like pure, unadulterated anti-Catholic bile. Posted by an idiot who has no idea of what he/she is talking about. Hey moderators----how do you allow this crap to stay up?
P.H. Dexippus
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Uh well, it was written by our faculty
CanyonAg77
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Hubert J. Farnsworth said:

He claims in that mess of words that A&M was founded by Matthew Gaines.
I thought you surely couldn't be correct, but doing a word search...

Quote:

While some point to this as proof that Sully founded Texas A&M, it is Matthew Gaines' efforts in securing, as a recently freed man and black Senator, the Morill Act in 1862 that gave us both A&M and Prairie View A&M...

To clear up a misconception, Prairie View A&M and TAMU were not founded by General Ross. The school was founded by Matthew Gaines and presided over initially by Thomas S. Gathright and L.W. Minor. TAMU itself was presided over by 6 other leaders before Ross.
Gaines was one of 21 or so votes in favor accepting the Morill Act funds. There is zero documentation of him having anything to do with writing or advocating for legislation regarding the Act or Texas A&M.

And I don't know who has the misconception that Ross founded A&M. Even the dimmest bulb can Google up that he didn't show up until the College was 14 years old.

As for Gaines "founding A&M", by the time classes opened, Gaines had been out of the Senate 2 years, had been out of the Republican Party for 5 years, and convicted (unfairly, in my view) of bigamy. Minor was simply the head teacher at Prairie View.

Hard for him to be founding A&M, when he was preaching to his flock in the next county over.
wbt5845
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TChaney said:

WARNING - This is a WALL of text.

This is the letter that is attempting to be used to convince donors to pressure A&M to remove Sully.

If you are concerned about being doxxed by the Anti Sully side
DO NOT CLICK ON ANY GOOGLE DOCS LINKS

The below screenshot is from Tony Buzbee's Facebook post after the user was blocked.

https://texags.com/forums/16/topics/3121247 (Original list and person who is sending this)

If you're reading this, we are here about a statue that has been the bronze heart of our campus and the center of traditions going back a hundred years. We are taught the legacy of a memorial, but only the veneer of the man. I ask that you bear with me as we go beyond the mere attachments we have formed and listen openly to the history of the man. It is painful, but most things worth doing are.
There are good things and bad things to say about Sully, and a prevalent argument is that the same could be said of any person. While this may be true, not many of us held a position quite like that of Lawrence Sullivan Ross. Both as an icon of tradition, and an icon of sullied past.
As a refresher, let's go over some things that we've all talked about in the last few days, weeks, or even years depending on when you entered this debate. This is not a unique debate to your generation or even mine, but it is my hope that it ends with us today.
I have heard accusations that we have forgotten the good of Sully and of the fine deeds he performed. That he founded one A&M and saved another, that he created the cadets, that he forged traditions, and that he made not only our campus but also our state stronger for his being there. That he was beloved by all for his honor and character. That he was, as his pedestal so proudly states, a soldier, a statesman, and a knightly gentleman. This is his gospel and his myth. One, I myself am no stranger to. But today, I want to talk about the man. To pull back the curtain of time and view him in his entirety, and understand how both he and his statue came to be.
I apologize in advance for some of the dated language I will be using today and the pain these words might invoke.
We know from letters and texts much more eloquently put together than this, that Sul Ross' father, Shapley Ross, was thought of as a good man. He worked with the native people around him and often pushed for their protection. He was a man of his time, strict with his own men, fair to the point of his own destruction. Shapley was lauded by many, and he cast a long shadow in which young Sullivan was raised.
He was also a slave-owner after he married.
The 1830 Lincoln County, MO, Census says Sully's mother owned 18 slaves. Eighteen lives. Eighteen souls held as property. And when his property escaped, Shapley was not content to let it go. In his own words:
"$100 Reward Ranaway from the subscriber, living in Bentonsport, on the 5th day of Jan. 1839, a Negro boy named Armstead, 19 years of age, about 5 feet 10 inches high, very black, flat made, weight about 150 lbs., red eyes, especially when he takes a dram, though not given to drunkenness, slow of speech and hoarse voice; quite intelligent for a boy of his age. Had on, when he left, a new fur hat, a steel mixt frock coat, torn on the back from the waist to the collar; a pair of new boots, and jeans pants. Took with him a drab over coat, two linsey, one check, and one domestic shirt, and one striped linsey bed cover. Any person catching and securing said boy until I can get him, and will write to Bentonsport, Van Buren county, I. T. will be entitled to the above reward. Shapley P. Ross."
In A.W. Harlan's "Slavery in Iowa Territory", he writes "Giles A. Sullivan assisted Ross in the capture of the Negro in Illinois. They were on their way to Missouri, when at Carthage, Illinois, they were arrested for kidnapping and had some difficulty in giving security in order to keep out of jail. I will not pretend to state particulars or facts as to the many quarrels and lawsuits that grew out of this attempt to hold slaves in Iowa. It was to Ross a losing business. As he was just ready to leave, a little lawyer by the name of Buckland from Massachusetts, had Ross arrested on some cause. Ross watched his opportunity and struck Buckland in the face, smashing his gold-bowed spectacles most effectually. He then ran away to Texas. At the first term of court at Keosauqua, Judge Charles Mason presiding, there was a great mass of papers relative to these cases disposed of in various ways, and Sullivan and Ross, and 'Ross's ******,' became bywords for several years."
I show you these things to contrast the eulogy they wrote about 'Ross's ******' in the Waco Daily Examiner:
"Old Armistead Ross, one of the most hardworking, steady and wealthy colored men in Waco, was consigned to the earth yesterday. Armistead's history is closely connected with that of Waco's he having come here over a third of a century ago, when Capt. S. P. Ross came. He assisted in building some of the first houses put up in Waco. His interests and labors were ever associated with those in the Central City. During over thirty years he had lived here and accumulated quite an amount of property, his estimated worth at the time of his death being in the neighborhood of $10,000. His funeral took place at 3 o'clock yesterday, and was attended by a large concourse of people, both white and black. The pall bearers who bore his coffin to the hearse were Gen. L. S. Ross, Sheriff W. T. Harris, County Clerk John W. Baker, Tom Padgitt, and John V. Smith. His remains were interred in the old cemetery"
No mention of his time as property, or of his first taste of freedom being stripped away by the father of the man who would later carry him to his grave.
After all, he had toiled for years in the Ross's service without pay, was drug back when he attempted his own emancipation, and then finally, after having freedom thrust upon him at the point of a Union bayonet, enriched the Ross's one last time in buying the land he himself had tilled for so long. Do not let antebellum nostalgia blind you to what is happening in this scene. This was Sully's father, and the son was shaped in his image.
In his time as military commander, we know Sully did all in his power to prove himself in battle. He was well liked by his peers, and much was expected of him. Above all, he desired to be a hero. It was this ambition and drive that brings us to Pease River, the battle with which he would begin his myth.
In the 1870s, Ross claimed to have taken 350 horses from the Comanche in a great excursion at Pease River. He was seeking office at the time, and his heroism was a cornerstone of his candidacy. Unfortunately, this display of valor may have been both more and less than it seemed.
Dr. Paul Carlson and Tom Crum did extensive research on the subject, and they determined that Ross greatly exaggerated both his victory and his prize the official records having his spoils at 45 horses at the most, that the village itself was at Mule Creek, and that the camp was mostly unarmed women and children.
A quote from their piece called Myth, Memory and Massacre: The Pease River Capture of Cynthia Anne Parker::
Texas Ranger Hiram B. Rogers who, like Sul Ross, fought at Mule Creek in 1860. "I was in the Pease river fight," he recalled in 1928, "but I am not very proud of it. That was not a battle at
all, but just a killing of [women]."
For those of you who say that the man was merely a product of his time, I would ask you to consider how you could look at the slaughter of women and children and, without any hint of remorse, turn that into a campaign centerpiece. Even his fellow Ranger, Rogers, found it to be disingenuous at best.
But one prize from his victory stands out above the rest. One great trophy from the slaughter - a young Comanche boy, about 9 years old. Sully first tried to give him as a gift to Sam Houston, but Houston declined his offer. Sully kept the boy. After which, he was known for his adoption of the Comanche boy and for raising him as his son. It would be the least a man could do after ordering the slaughter of his people. Yet, we now know he was treated more as an attendant or pet.
"Camp Bartow Sept. 4th, 1861 My Dear Lizzie: Pease creates more excitement than a monkey show. The Ladies have made him a fine suit of uniform L. S. Ross"
"Pease Ross, the Indian, was drinking yesterday, and got mixed up with the crippled Mexican who sets up in front of the Imperial, which so exasperated the organ-grinder that he gave chase to Ross. The latter, in attempting to evade the irate Mexican, ran plump into the arms of Officers Bell and Miller. As a matter purely of protection to Pease, he was placed in the cooler. Waco Daily Examiner, 10 December 1881"
Now, the Civil War.
In the book "Freedom By The Sword: The U.S. Colored Troops", we read on a skirmish over Yazoo City, he wrote: "I immediately ordered [the 6th and 9th Texas Cavalry], which happened to be nearest at hand, to charge them," Ross reported. "The negroes, after the first fire, broke in wild disorder, each seeming intent on nothing but making his escape. Being mounted on mules, however, but few of them got away. The road all the way to Yazoo City was literally strewed with their bodies."
Literally strewed with their bodies. A knightly scene indeed.
Why did this happen?
A quote from Herbert, Aptheker's "Negro Casualties in the Civil War" explains:
"Brigadier General L. S. Ross cut off and surrounded the Federal garrison at Yazoo City, Mississippi in March, 1864, and, on the fifth, demanded its surrender. "We squabbled about the terms of the capitulation," reported the General, "as I would not recognize Negroes as soldiers, or guarantee them nor their officers protection as such." As a result, he went on, the Negroes "returned and pressed our forces so hard that we were compelled to withdraw and they refused to surrender."
He could not recognize the Negroes as soldiers, because doing so would be an admission that they were people. He would have to face and question the mission of the Confederacy.
Like many of the men of his time, he wanted to prove to his wife and his men that he would not shy away from war. He would uphold his honor and fulfill his duty, even when his enthusiasm for the war began to dim.
Ross writes in a letter home: "I must confess that I desire to return, yet I feel that my duty to my Country demands the course I am pursuing, and hence it becomes more tolerable."
Later again:
"I would resign and return home but I feel that my duty to you and my Country demands of me, all the service and sacrifice I can render or make Very many of the old officers are retiring from the service and returning home. I do not feel that I could do so honorably while my Country bleeds at every pore."
"My country" he says. The Confederacy.
With every life he took and every future cut short, he was changed, but not toward compassion. By his own words he could have stopped at any point and returned home, but his pride and learned behavior prevented him.
Following the Civil War, Ross was barred from voting due to his service to the Confederacy, but it did him no true harm. After all, even without a vote, he still had his acreage and generational wealth, built on the backs of slaves.
Bill Page put together a compilation of sources, some I have mentioned. Within he lists many of the convictions now Sheriff Sully made against African Americans. There is also evidence that suggests Sully specifically arrested & fined those who were accused of running across his brother-in-law's crops.
To balance that, he did build a new jail. "The Waco Examiner states that "the prisoners were removed yesterday from the old to the new jail, forty-two in number, under the charge of the sheriff, Gen. Ross, Mr. Claybaugh, the jailor. The birds sung glibly in their new cage."
Perhaps he was biased in whom the law and justice would apply to, but at least he ensured that any of his new guests would not want for new quarters. Of note, is that this was not to be the end of Ross's relationship with prisons. Some years later, faced with a threat to the profitability of the penal system, Governor Ross dramatically would reduce the number of pardons provided to appellants (a practice that previously would free 6-12% of prisoners) helping ensure that the prisons would not lose funds for lack of occupants.
A quote from the Austin American Statesman "There are docketed in the executive office 11,076 applications for relief, and of these fully 1,500 may be said to be now pending. Since Governor Ross was inaugurated, there have been 350 applications for pardon, of which seventy-two were granted. 24 parties have been restored to citizenship, and 56 remissions and commutations have been made. Seven of the pardon cases were left over from the last administration."
Out of all of those numbers, 32 are documented as African Americans. Remember, these pardons were limited for profit, not justice.
In 1875 as a delegate of Texas, Sully helped draft language supporting separate schools "Sec. 7 Separate schools shall be provided for the white and colored children, and impartial provision shall be made for both."
While some point to this as proof that Sully founded Texas A&M, it is Matthew Gaines' efforts in securing, as a recently freed man and black Senator, the Morill Act in 1862 that gave us both A&M and Prairie View A&M. The Morill Act provided the funds and lands needed for the creation of a Texas public college. Ironically, Gaines was arrested for making a civil rights speech the same year Sully and his crew pushed forward the draft.
However, I will give credit where credit is due. It is worth noting that Sully also cast his vote for blacks to have the same voting rights as whites, a point in his favor, even if it appears this vote was cast as a bargaining chip for other issues.
Now we come to Ross as governor.
His first term is noted for the restoration of the Land Office commissioner. His second term is defined by the Jaybird-Woodpecker War of 1889 in Fort Bend County.
For those unfamiliar with this event, some 400 white supremacist Democrats, known as the Jaybirds, began a feud against the mix of black and white Republicans who were known as the Woodpeckers. More than a mere squabble between parties, this war would result in assassinations, exchanges of gunfire, and even an instance of dynamite being placed under the bed of an African American couple in a bid to take control of office.
Sully attempted to gain some control over the situation using martial law, Texas Rangers, and the Houston Light Guards. While he was able to create a peace of sorts, he then allowed the Jaybirds, the white supremacists, to gain control of office, ensuring the disenfranchisement of African Americans and creating a "whites only" center of power that would not be pierced until Barbara Jordan's election in 1965.
For those of you who would bring it up, I have not forgotten the orphanage for deaf & blind children of color, but let it be noted that it was the work of Rev. A. Grant, J. J. Hamilton, Rev. Saml. Gates, Rev. C. H. Anderson and Prof. Blackshear that laid the foundations for its creation and direction, and the legislation put forward by William Holland, who sponsored the bill providing for PVAMU. Though Sully's fingerprints were indeed on the orphanage, they existed only on the pen with which he signed his acceptance.
Thus, we finally come to Sully's tenure at Texas A&M and involvement with Prairie View A&M.
To clear up a misconception, Prairie View A&M and TAMU were not founded by General Ross. The school was founded by Matthew Gaines and presided over initially by Thomas S. Gathright and L.W. Minor. TAMU itself was presided over by 6 other leaders before Ross.
It is true that Sully helped restructure funds to save PVAMU, the bulk of contributions of work towards that effort came from the principal, faculty, staff, and students of Prairie View and from one Mr. W.R.Cavitt. He also saved $10,000 of the initial $15,000 for TAMU, leaving PVAMU $5000. Hogg would come behind and actually redistribute this again, giving TAMU of the money.
Sully's initial efforts to preserve Prairie View A&M were to ensure that university segregation would not be disturbed. After seeing the aftermath of the Woodpecker/Jaybird War, he could not afford to risk an uprising nor allow blacks to be on his campus when so many Confederate families depended upon him to keep the campus in line and white. It was far easier to allow them their own space and oversight, and in turn he also placed himself in an altruistic light while being mostly opportunistic in his approach.
Back to this campus, it is true that Sully contributed to this school in numerous ways. He fixed failing infrastructure, worked with the students on campus, and did much for the betterment and engagement of his white male students.
Again, giving credit where credit is due, now President Ross did allow some of the professors' daughters to become "campus girls" to bring a feminine touch to the wild boys. They were allowed to attend classes at A&M, so long as they understood they would never receive credit for it. While he may have considered the idea of coed membership, he did nothing to actually push it or even take up the ready cause to create an annex suggested by a coalition of women who were fighting for it. It would be decades later under another military man, Major General Earl Rudder, to finally give more than lip service to the admission of women and people of color to our school.
It is true certain traditions formed under his term, but they were not started by him.
Aggie Ring began the year before his term, but the style we're familiar with was designed by E.C. Jonas 1894.
Aggie Band was started by Joseph Holick. Ross initially invited him to campus to cobble shoes, but his music talent drew other talent in, and eventually they formed a band.
Ross Volunteers were initially the Scott Volunteers honor guard. They changed their name after Ross' death.
Other student orgs also sprang up, but this is unsurprising as Ross had a general reputation for being a bit of a socialite, as long as that company was white.
We know now that the penny tradition comes from a table and wasn't heard of until around '77, if memory serves. There is no written record of the penny for your thoughts quote or any reliable source of its origination.
Caufield excerpt: "Ross wrote a brief but impassioned statement detailing "what Texas, under Democratic rule, has done in the past and is doing now for the education and benefit of the colored race" (1889, p. 1): The Democrats of Texas have agreed that the negro shall enjoy equal rights before the lawThey were for years led as so many chained slaves by their white political leaders; now they rule supremely these old chieftains. They have made rapid progress in education and personal independence. They have in Texas thousands of accomplished teachers and preachers and many political orators able to cope with the gifted speakers of the white race. Democrats have 4 contributed largely to this triumph. It is a singular notion that the Democrats could be hostile to the negro. It would be idiotic to yearly hand out $665,000 for the negro's advancement if the Democrats desired to suppress them. Education will strengthen them for any contest. If kept in blind ignorance they might be governed to extinction by the white race, stronger in numbers, wealth, and intelligence. (Ross, 1889, p. 3) Therein lies the contradiction. While Ross "was only a nominal supporter of the peculiar institution" (Benner, 1983, p. 20), owning no slaves at the outset of the Civil War, he maintained a strong sense of racial superiority. "
As an aside, while Ross never had the titles over his familial slaves, he still benefited from their labor and degradation, dragging Armstead ( "Ross' ******" as records state) into battle:
Sul determined to go along, so carrying his rifle and accompanied by Armstead, he unobtrusively joined the pursuit. The problem was that the only mount he and Armstead, could find was a recalcitrant mule. On this animal young master and slave brought up the rear of the party. All went well until the posse caught up with the horse thieves. A running gun battle broke out between the settlers and the Indians just the kind of excitement for an adventurous kid who longed to be an Indian fighter. (From Benner, Judith Ann, Sul Ross, Soldier, Statesman, Educator, College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1983, page 12) - excerpt from Bill Page's compilation.
Ross also was involved with both the Waco Masonic Lodge and the United Confederate Veterans. His involvement with them would lead to the L. S. Ross Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. It would be a waste of time to link Ross' involvement with the UDV and UDC to his personal involvement with the KKK, however, both organizations set the stage for the white supremacist idealogy to take hold and allowed it to rise again.
After Ross' death, there was a period of mourning, and the L. S. Ross Chapter of the UDC attempted to raise a monument of him on campus in 1898 following his demise, but were unsuccessful as there were others, like Narnie Harrison who suggested building a fund in his name instead, who thought a more fitting memorial would be something living and not an empty token. Parks were suggested and an annex for women in 1901 was suggested.
1904, C. A. Westbrook is put in charge of the UDC association that has been earnestly attempting dances and dinners to earn money for their on campus monument throughout this time. She gets the closest to achieving their goal, but it dies along with Ms. Orland after a fall from her horse. The UDC effort is never quite the same as it once was, but it holds onto those L. S. Ross funds as tightly as it can. 1907 another attempt to raise funds falls flat.
Now, finally, we come to the building of the statue we are debating today.
Before I begin, allow me to provide some background of the climate of the time.
A&M has a picture on their diversity timeline of two African American men working and a trainer called "Blackie" workers, not students dated 1909.
In 1910, A&M Minstrels was created, introducing blackface to campus and all that it entailed.
In 1915, African Americans were finally hired as district and county extension agents but were still not allowed as students.
In 1917, legislature teams associated with UDC attempts to pass a bill for the appropriations of funds for the monument they have at this point spent years scraping together. They are rejected as Woodbul sits on the panel, and he is unyielding. UDC only has to wait one more year for their chance.
1918 comes with two events of note:
First, research began on some of the inconsistencies in Ross' prior statements. A seeking of verifications of some of the exaggerations we discussed earlier.
Second, the beginning murmurs of the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan begins. White supremacists rear their ugly heads once more and begin to seize power in the region.
Dr. Kelly McMichael writes in "Sacred Memories", that Senate Bill 361 is proposed by the 35th legislature, of whom some will become KKK members, in order to create this statue. Contributions come from both the United Daughters of the Confederacy and the United Confederate Veterans.
Records show that Lt. Gen. Hobby's wife sits on the legislative board within UDC. They had made other allies prior, as seen in their 1917 attempt. Woodbul and his loyalists were no longer in their way. At last, the Confederate daughters could raise their testament to the grandiosity of Confederate ideals and the white superiority it stood for.
Like many of the statues of Confederates raised at this time, this statue was one of oppression veiled by a varnish of history. Those who erected this statue, and those like it, understood exactly the environment they were seeking to enshrine that of the Confederate, white South. But it did not start with them. It was built off the atmosphere of racist leaning culture and legislature that Ross had allowed to grow and thrive.
And that's the thing about institutional racism. It is beyond intent. Whether or not Ross himself was a diehard racist has little to do with the fact that he created the openings for racism to embed itself into our culture, and for the Klan and historical revisionists to cling to, so they had little to fear in overtaking the campus for years after the statue's unveiling. Whether he intended to uplift them or not becomes irrelevant, and they see him as their hero and friend because it was he that allowed them to rise up and take hold once more.
Thus, this statue was erected. This statue that we have divided our student body and city over, turned Aggie against Aggie and neighbor against neighbor.
Even now, there still persists an undertone of racist discourse that creates strife for our students of color, but it doesn't have to.
It is time to take a stand against the sins of our past. Time to let go of the cruelty and muffled racism of the Old Army, and march together forward with the New. As a campus we have grown beyond Sully. We are now able to look at him as he was, rather than how his supporters would have him remembered.
The Cadets refer to him as Soldier, Statesman, Knightly gentleman, but to and for who?
He was not some sainted martyr, filled to the brim with compassion and virtue. He was a man, and a flawed man at that. He was passionate when it came to the white people in his circle, and patronizingly compassionate for the "negroes" around him. In understanding this statue, we must look beyond its existence as a tradition, and examine what it is we say by its presence.
The statue must stay because the statue has stayed is no argument.
We have no shortage of history. We are steeped in it from the day we are enrolled. We have no shortage of heroes. Their medals and stories adorn the wall of the MSC. All we need do is ask if we are willing to live up to our legacy and push forward to a better tomorrow, or if we love our past too much to move beyond it.
Ask whether we wish to extol the deeds of the man, both good and bad, and what that says about us. Is his virtue worth preserving in statue more than his vice demands its absence? Do we value his deeds for the school more than his inhumanity towards his fellow man? Will we choose to keep him as a model for all who pass his gaze, knowing now who he really was and who put him on his pedestal?
Ask yourselves these questions, and then think once more about whether or not Lawrence Sullivan Ross is a man to whom we should aspire and who should remain immortalized in sculpture. Consider whether the good he did warrants his memorial more than the pain he left behind on the necks of our students of color. Think on whether or not this statue would even exist had Confederate daughters not needed to soften and glorify a bloodsoaked past.
If you can look in your heart and say that his preservation of the school as it was when the statue was erected is of greater value than the blood he spilled and the lives his actions continue to harm, then keep the statue. But, never forget, a memorial says as much about the reverent as it does the revered.
Thank you.
Some resources in your journey to understanding:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.co.waller.tx.us/upload/common/docs/Veterans/memorial_book.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiq8Oy2ndzqAhVFPawKHRFGAoEQFjAPegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw3RCtcVmP8KTdwT6PH_7mu8
https://lrl.texas.gov/LASDOCS/35R/SB361/SB361_35R.pdf#page=5
https://photos.app.goo.gl/quMWYDutvHt2XvJN9
https://photos.app.goo.gl/pboh1G5pMxxEqtfy5
https://photos.app.goo.gl/zvU3oJEFL6QrxBSX8
https://documentcloud.adobe.com/link/track?uri=urn%3Aaaid%3Ascds%3AUS%3A11449434-b6c7-4025-a3b4-f4363988d91f&fbclid=IwAR0DZCkunc0QAXcwaVlPMgDATGC3rI1f7HAGCOGZ6_bGJBMlqKzD3pVdX34



https://books.google.com/books?id=TBFCAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA269&lpg=PA269&dq=%22Sul+Ross+Memorial+Association%22&source=bl&ots=4z9OKBB_Ek&sig=ACfU3U37mdDV_phykzXqocsugKv3hNMfPw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi586yEmZPqAhVGQ6wKHcFtCYUQ6AEwAXoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22Sul%20Ross%20Memorial%20Association%22&f=false
https://books.google.com/books?id=lb7jDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA170&lpg=PA170&dq=did+children+die+at+pease+river&source=bl&ots=Dk51WVSl6a&sig=ACfU3U2FBUP0VwuCQ0cxojEFs1sKVTgE5g&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiVs8yclvPpAhVS7qwKHSMtAnAQ6AEwEHoECAMQAQ#v=onepage&q=did%20children%20die%20at%20pease%20river&f=false
https://books.google.com/books?id=cSBUafCHq-UC&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=%22killing+of+squaws%22&source=bl&ots=y1vMvxmvXJ&sig=ACfU3U0SsZnlA46bIdX5E9USctmiePkahg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiZtIDRsP3pAhUFtjEKHVmeB20Q6AEwAHoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22killing%20of%20squaws%22&f=false
https://www.historynet.com/one-little-indian-boy.htm
https://www.austincc.edu/pgoines/robertevans?fbclid=IwAR3oxazqP7rSpoiDVRr8yRyKvoOGQp8-gnvIUwq2SOr3eOgW1nnP_EKO1NU
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theeagle.com/news/local/historian-explores-rudder-s-world-war-ii-legacy-at-bryan-event/article_1de8f6be-874f-11e9-8f10-e7e73e251c3f.amp.html
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EywvykzPQvaTE0fT_4bm4kmbc0c7jXjZ/view?fbclid=IwAR3Su4LgfaPOuApJ5vZapMSKYrabCGGttRaur2d45kzln3R23KlLLWuDVmI
https://www.myaggienation.com/aggie_profiles/gen-james-earl-rudder-led-texas-a-m-through-immense-change-and-growth/article_c8ad387e-0f43-11e3-824c-0019bb2963f4.html
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EKd6TZy1w_tSd7sderXTcNz1x_1f__Vc/view?fbclid=IwAR12efzLWJETrpRxZu8wzZl2npdNb1NJhWkfQueixuCq6zVqpXq0eBHnQKY
https://tamucc-ir.tdl.org/bitstream/handle/1969.6/639/banks%2C%20theodore%20thesis.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
https://books.google.com/books?id=Lh8jDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA87&lpg=PA87&dq=tom+crum+sul+ross&source=bl&ots=etGzpbDZap&sig=ACfU3U12pApSL1dnCr4Ni-8yJNN4qlVuNg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi_7fuFz_zpAhXitTEKHYSqChEQ6AEwBHoECAYQAQ#v=onepage&q=tom%20crum%20sul%20ross&f=false
https://history.army.mil/html/books/030/30-24/CMH_Pub_30-24.pdf
https://www.tsl.texas.gov/exhibits/prisons/inquiry/pardons.html
https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/wfj01?fbclid=IwAR0xl073FGaKBfzycXkmbilECpUsubUQE_Vu_RgysZ5OeyGok_ftfp6MI7E
https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fro81
https://history.house.gov/People/Listing/J/JORDAN,-Barbara-Charline-(J000266)/?fbclid=IwAR0TuDX8YxnOBR93vyfy4ye7f2n8o_mvtEQKK0sxjZDYYD3weo65A53eGn8
https://abc13.com/texas-am-university-white-male-military/5333165/#:~:text=This%20landmark%20decision%20was%20pushed,attend%20classes%20and%20receive%20degrees.
https://www.pvamu.edu/cahs/cep/
http://www.thebatt.com/news/facing-a-m-s-past/article_b95f6fb2-3b2b-11e9-ba89-0b1d134044d0.html
https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/wfj01?fbclid=IwAR1dw3ssdYK8ybkDvgjX8sYqJa8z-Q4AqmI5V8xEqhmI-xS6gUyEIiphaVo
https://www.theeagle.com/news/local/historian-explores-rudder-s-world-war-ii-legacy-at-bryan-event/article_1de8f6be-874f-11e9-8f10-e7e73e251c3f.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20070610004657/http://www.rtis.com/reg/bcs/pol/tamucr/pg5arep1.htm
https://studentaffairs.tamu.edu/students/matthew-gaines-statue/
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Land-Grant-College-Act-of-1862
https://www.tamupress.com/book/9780876112380/sacred-memories/
http://lazymf-lazymf.blogspot.com/2011/05/texas-the-good-bad-and-ugly.html
https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/bitstream/handle/1969.1/173554/WALTERS-DISSERTATION-2018.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
https://www.splcenter.org/sites/default/files/the_groups_2013.pdf
https://www.law.upenn.edu/cf/faculty/krooseve/workingpapers/91TexLRev121(2012).pdf
http://www.insitebrazosvalley.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/if-walls-could-talk-tales-of-innovation-and-renovation-from-the-cavitt-house/
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oGcsPrriV9tXWs0OOo1QjaZoHhrfOxLh/view?usp=sharing
https://www.goodbullhunting.com/2020/6/10/21282874/lawrence-sullivan-sul-ross-pennies-on-sully-statue-controversy?fbclid=IwAR0a3bXkc8njEzSACbMB90sYMQWvkz3fwKOTNipJvvDAogEm042GfAE02NE
Email correspondence from Cushings library with sources to learn about Lawrence Sullivan Ross:
"Hello Brian,
Records for the time of Ross as President of the then College are scarce. The Main Building that housed the President's office, the library, archives, and other offices burned down in 1912. Images of the Main Building aflame and its destruction can be seen here, https://www.flickr.com/photos/cushinglibrary/sets/72157618425627692/.The College's records, up to that point in time, were held in that building. The Academic Building stands on what had been the location of Main.
The Battalion and Aggieland (and its predecessors) are online at https://library.tamu.edu/yearbooks/ and https://newspaper.library.tamu.edu, respectively. They are text searchable.
You've already searched LibCat (https://libcat.tamu.edu) and Archon since you have located and requested information for your research. There are several books that may be pertinent, below. I would not be surprised if some were available for browsing through the HathiTrust (https://www.hathitrust.org), so you may to check there, given the limited physical services the Libraries have currently.
Benner, Judith Ann. Sul Ross, Soldier, Statesman, Educator. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1983.
Cofer, David Brooks. Early History of Texas A&M College Through Letters and Papers. College Station: Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas, 1952.
Dethloff, Henry C. A Centennial History of Texas A&M University, 1876-1976. College Station, Texas A&M UP, 1975. 2 Volumes.
Perry, George S. The Story of Texas A&M. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1951.
In addition to a search for Ross as a subject/keyword in both LibCat and Archon, I would suggest Archon searches for "Board of Directors", President, etc for any archival records from that time period.
As you are no doubt aware, many campus functions have shifted due to Covid-19. The Libraries are no exception. Currently, we are not open and am not sure when we will resume operations that support researchers, such as yourself. Once we are open again, I encourage you to request materials that you may find relevant from your searches in Archon and LibCat. Once the request is received and a research appointment made, we can pull books or archival materials for you to work with in the Reading Room.
Since Ross was also the Governor of Texas, there are materials that can be researched at the Texas State Library and Archives (TSLAC) in Austin https://www.tsl.texas.gov/arc/index.html#Guides. To my eye, the "Processed State and Local Records" https://www.tsl.texas.gov/arc/findingaids/recordsfindingaids.html and "Executive Record Books" https://www.tsl.texas.gov/arc/exrecordsbks.html would be the most pertinent of those listed on that page. A statewide search engine, though dated, is TARO - http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/index.html - which is easier to navigate than TSLAC's for search results. Texas legislative records are handled by the Legislature and more information can be found out here https://capitol.texas.gov/MnuSearch.aspx or here https://www.lrl.texas.gov/legis/billsearch/lrlhome.cfm for any legislation or votes he supported as a state Senator. Baylor is also part of TSLAC's Regional Historical Resource Depositories (RHRD) system and may house county records from when Ross was sheriff of McLennan Co in their Texas Collection. More information is here: https://www.tsl.texas.gov/arc/local/depositories.html. Baylor and UT also have some Ross papers in their archives.
Since he was a well-known public figure, there was wide spread newspaper coverage at the time. One of my colleagues in the Libraries, Bill Page, has undertaken several long-term projects to find A&M related topics (Ross, Matthew Gaines, 1918 Flu pandemic, Asian American Students, Women at A&M, African Americans in B/CS Cosmopolitan Club -the precursor of the International Students Club , etc) in the newspaper materials that we have, mainly in the form of microfiche/microfilm or through online providers. As such he has produced a nearly 300-page document about newspaper articles, academic articles and chapters, assorted government documents, etc about Ross. I have attached that for your reference.
Best,
Anton duPlessis
--
Anton duPlessis, Certified Archivist
Clinical Associate Professor
Curator, Mexican Colonial Collection
co-Curator, Chapman Texas & Borderlands Collection
Curator, Ragan Military Collection
Director, Los Primeros Libros Project
Selector and Liaison to Hispanic Studies
Cushing Memorial Library & Archives
Texas A&M University Libraries
duplessis@tamu.edu
5000 TAMU | College Station, TX 77843-5000
Tel. 979-845-1951 | Fax. 979-845-1441
https://tamu.zoom.us/j/4896252885
https://library.tamu.edu
http://primeroslibros.org"
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1I_LzpuXi8LJoCnLRxUmakZI9zLvzpiv9cWVMv-mLUvk/edit?usp=drivesdk
https://www.change.org/p/texas-a-m-university-administration-it-s-time-to-remove-the-sully-statue?recruiter=1107385293&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=psf_combo_share_abi&utm_term=psf_combo_share_initial&recruited_by_id=312c6e40-a63e-11ea-96fe-d7532c6154cd&utm_content=fht-22553366-en-us%3Av2
"The devil is in the details. During the second wave of the Klan made its first appearance in Texas at Houston in the fall of 1920 add a reunions of the United Confederate Veterans. It quickly spread in the 1920s. Probably a majority of the House of Representatives of the 38th legislature over klansman. The clan March in downtown Bryan in 1920 or 1921. I'm guessing that many of the folks who pushed for the statue in 1919 would shortly become klansman in the 1920s. They knew exactly what they were doing. Sully was a white supremacist in the white supremacists knew it." - Dr. Alvard
"Michael Kraft, an older man who lives in Bryan, said that his grandfather was on faculty at A&M in the 20s and told him that everyone in faculty in the 20s had to be in the Klan." Dan K., fellow student - further research off this leads to the KKK robes of faculty in Cushing Library
Bill Page is sharing information with me and said to share with others. Here is an interesting article he found from The Eagle in 1911. Life was tough for professors and their families...
The labor situation at A. & M. College continues to be serious because of the large number of laborers, men and women, who are in the cotton patch getting out the crop. Because of the increase in dormitories it has been found necessary to increase the janitor force of the college, but Negroes are not available for the work. An effort was made to get competent Negro janitors in Houston but it failed and the present janitor force is doubling up on the work until the necessary men can be found. The handling of the family washing each week is also a problem. Because of the lack of women who will do the work several of the ladies of the campus have had to go to the washtub during the past week, and while in several instances a woman could be employed to do the washing, "milady" has had to do the ironing. Cooks are out of the question, and the lady of the house in many instances is cooking for the family also. But the wives of the officers and professors of the college are resourceful and they can do this work when it is necessary, and they are not too proud to do it. Bryan Daily Eagle, 6 October 1911, page 2
http://www.thebatt.com/news/milestones-tracing-the-corps-of-cadets-history/article_d12768b0-3fff-11e9-89bb-83227f6a2f26.html
https://www.tamu.edu/traditions/the-corps/special-units/index.html
https://www.tamu.edu/traditions/aggie-culture/aggie-ring/index.html#:~:text=The%20tradition%20of%20the%20Aggie,symbols%20used%20in%20today's%20design.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/bitstream/handle/1969.1/ETD-TAMU-2832/CAULFIELD-THESIS.pdf%3Fsequence%3D1%26isAllowed%3Dy&ved=2ahUKEwih_8-t16jqAhVGRqwKHQCqCj4QFjANegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw2Wy5dIEIo301gC_0HRSBjM&cshid=1593490803084
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc2829/m2/1/high_res_d/dissertation.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjfo5eC36jqAhUEnKwKHeEsBUIQFjAOegQICxAB&usg=AOvVaw3ZzzEhkBzZfRKpZqghTX8c&cshid=1593492913308
Today in Aggie History: A&M hires Thomas Gathright as first president
COLE, JAMES REID | The Handbook of Texas Online
Cover Feature - Howdy, Mr. President
Lone Star Legacy: Introducing Joseph Holick -- Musician, Band Leader and Boot Maker
https://books.google.com/books?id=CrwaNTd4bdIC&pg=PA154&lpg=PA154&dq=governor+hobby+united+daughters+of+confederacy&source=bl&ots=NhgWpfc7tF&sig=ACfU3U003QnsH1-TW4WU1ogxmCZpV-JmIg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjuvKyxq6rqAhUDlawKHdlfCNMQ6AEwAHoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=governor%20hobby%20united%20daughters%20of%20confederacy&f=false
https://lrl.texas.gov/legeLeaders/governors/govPage.cfm?governorID=26
https://books.google.com/books?id=CrwaNTd4bdIC&pg=PA154&lpg=PA154&dq=governor+hobby+united+daughters+of+confederacy&source=bl&ots=NhgWpfc7tF&sig=ACfU3U003QnsH1-TW4WU1ogxmCZpV-JmIg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjuvKyxq6rqAhUDlawKHdlfCNMQ6AEwAHoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=governor%20hobby%20united%20daughters%20of%20confederacy&f=false
https://www.lib.lsu.edu/sites/default/files/sc/findaid/1357.pdf
https://www.essentialcivilwarcurriculum.com/confederate-veterans-associations.html
https://lrl.texas.gov/scanned/specialSessions/35-1supp.pdf
https://lrl.texas.gov/sessions/specialSessions/specialSessionTopics.cfm?legSessionID=35-1
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.texasresearchramblers.org/newspapers/1923TWENTY-fiveYearsAgo(1898).pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjEnt6l7arqAhXrmq0KHSLbDWQ4ChAWMAl6BAgBEAE&usg=AOvVaw0fjVMsEw0SuAot1fxS2CNX
https://www.werelate.org/wiki/Person:William_Bagby_(5)
https://books.google.com/books?id=CrwaNTd4bdIC&pg=PA76&lpg=PA76&dq=mrs.+bill+bagby+United+daughters+of+the+confederacy&source=bl&ots=NhgWpi83pL&sig=ACfU3U2NB_imCZm9psmSFEK3t0Q9O3BV5A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwikzvHPiqvqAhUCQq0KHcg3D1YQ6AEwAHoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=mrs.%20bill%20bagby%20United%20daughters%20of%20the%20confederacy&f=false
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/3395802/clan-parade-bryan/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/589763/the-bryan-weekly-eagle/
https://www.thc.texas.gov/public/upload/Centennial/Monuments%20and%20Buildings%20MPS.pdf
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Q5AEjwVSd87s9fnep0_YiyJZLXwIy7oG/view?usp=drivesdk
https://www.wacomasonic.org/sul-ross/
https://lrl.texas.gov/committees/cmtesDisplay.cfm?cmteID=3650&s=TRUE
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth543730/m1/4/
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XI4h66wr0wxgx7jQYvjcwsYFxv3gtwDX/view?usp=drivesdk
https://books.googleusercontent.com/books/content?req=AKW5QaeHX83IZINlnazpR0Qizz6J1u9z7DllWgJkoqIg4KC0UdV9FqdJaLYvAeQSvCEkGVHBDUPrPTmVY9BddSzkS7MMNFm5Wv9DgCPCbDaqrNsh6_9gmrLUDt-R22nHdwkTKAFz4fj1xXv1TPWO-CtnMLCKuPv6ew_wa5LgJk5hexCmtRkZFum34tbY-lkxQyf3wVhq6UQ0Vu3MJSjp2kwJFKDeA_mdbE6SA25PFQXNeiaAIXnv7pTrzWwu89vCcHklOReU3cPA4RnOX1Jt2eRTi218dVuNdQ
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XTOCUZCAPsO1zq7QMRpQ9i4ZJ5dwpcRe/view?usp=drivesdk
https://books.google.com/books?id=VtaZVBagK7sC&pg=PA175&lpg=PA175&dq=sul+ross+negro+killer&source=bl&ots=eAlICKX4lX&sig=ACfU3U1jtaTZk2aGFm0WZ82M4-sB24np8Q&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj0ocWaleLqAhUDCawKHSEsAaE4HhDoATAGegQICRAB#v=onepage&q=sul%20ross&f=false
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aFQNPppQ22roAIb2mLWIFtrVqTd6GOHs/view?usp=drivesdk
https://books.google.com/books?id=CAb8Zf-4R7wC&pg=PA102&lpg=PA102&dq=mary+r+barnard+sul+ross&source=bl&ots=wSx-dHbKqR&sig=ACfU3U2h0GPqnBB61X5rEac1vPVqw57BYA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjQjvGf6unqAhUDLKwKHfBYBaAQ6AEwEnoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=mary%20r%20barnard%20sul%20ross&f=false
Multiple hands went in to researching and compiling this data. There are reasons not to support the statue. It isn't for lack of history and knowledge.
By all means, make up your own mind, but at least do so with all the facts at your disposal.




TChaney
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Sleepnumber said:

TChaney said:

PabloSerna said:

I recall Archbishop Fulton Sheen saying that few people truly hate the Catholic Church - most people hate what they think it is about.

Reading through the examples above - they clearly have no idea what the Catholic Church is really about. How unfortunate.

+pablo


I'm making an assumption you are Catholic. If I'm wrong I'm sorry.

I'm looking at it from a neutral standpoint and to me, especially the wording, it just speaks to me as unadulterated hatred for something. I am really curious what that looks like from a Catholic point of view.
It looks like pure, unadulterated anti-Catholic bile. Posted by an idiot who has no idea of what he/she is talking about. Hey moderators----how do you allow this crap to stay up?
I am not usually apologetic, but if I crossed a line I am sorry. I just think this is a prime example of the culture that exists among certain faculty members. Their own words speak volumes more than I ever could.

I have seen a few "If they" here and there. Here is a direct link to the post.
https://www.facebook.com/filipe.castro.581187/posts/980240549094904
PabloSerna
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AG
Sleepnumber said:

TChaney said:

PabloSerna said:

I recall Archbishop Fulton Sheen saying that few people truly hate the Catholic Church - most people hate what they think it is about.

Reading through the examples above - they clearly have no idea what the Catholic Church is really about. How unfortunate.

+pablo


I'm making an assumption you are Catholic. If I'm wrong I'm sorry.

I'm looking at it from a neutral standpoint and to me, especially the wording, it just speaks to me as unadulterated hatred for something. I am really curious what that looks like from a Catholic point of view.
It looks like pure, unadulterated anti-Catholic bile. Posted by an idiot who has no idea of what he/she is talking about. Hey moderators----how do you allow this crap to stay up?

It's not so much "anti-catholic" as sacrilege. Claiming to have "consecrated" host in your pagan shrine is not fully understanding that, for Catholics, it is the *real* presence of God himself.


>> The artist is more interesting. The paper claims that he using "hostias consecradas" (consecrated hosts) to spell out "Pederastia" or homosexual relations with same sex minors. As best I can read.

Shouldn't Jesus be concerned about this?? Yes. So - I'm with the artist on that.

+pablo

AnScAggie
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PabloSerna said:

bmks270 said:

Nobody will read that, it's too long.
Read it all.

Very well documented. Will certainly shine a light on the LSR statue that up until now has been hiding in the shadows of tradition and ignorance.

++++

I don't think TAMU is ready for this sort of step. What I mean by that is - the power structure in place is very much behold-ant (if that's a word) to the mystique of men like Sul Ross. I understood this better after doing my own reading and research about Texas History* and the men (Ma Ferguson doesn't quite count) who founded our State. I say our State, because I am still here - just like my family before me and my kids after me will be.

It won't stop me from speaking out or posting on here. I think, even if you disagree with me, at least you hear me and I hear you. That I do hear you is just as important. It should be a dialogue and quest for understanding - even if we agree to disagree.

Even if you don't agree with the position, the research gives a context to the fundraising effort by Confederate organizations set on honoring Gen. Ross. That, in and of itself, should be required reading by advocates who often say that the statue has nothing to do with his Civil War past.

+Pablo

(yes - peace y'all)


EDIT - forgot to add *footnote - that I have been doing this for years. Part of my own journey. I love Texas, but I wanted the unvarnished truth.
tcruise63
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unvarnished, right
texagbeliever
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PabloSerna said:

texagbeliever said:

Pablo's issues and to a larger extent Alvaid's and others can best be pointed out as a fundamental issue. They see the world in what i'd describe as failuristic means. A "failuristic" view is one that sees people by the worst moments and fixates on that. It is devoid of forgiveness, grace and redemption. It is also a view that only allows for one's standing in society to increase by tearing down those are them, since at the end of the day there is nothing Pablo can do to make up for his greatest mistake. At the same time Pablo believes those around him may try to do the very same thing to him so it is now a race to eliminate the threat.

The flaw of this "faulirstic" approach is that there is ultimately no end and really no good. Society will try turn those who are good, and thus better, bad thus lowering those good individuals to society's level. This is evident by Alvaid's case study where he tried to get students to disrespect the veterans by wearing hats in MSC or by his graphic and distasteful posts on Catholicism (bringing down the religious to be as bad or worse than him). It is evident by the doxxers trying to destroy people for one comment or statement on twitter or facebook.

I find such a way of life to be so unfulfilling and empty. Ultimately we are all in need of forgiveness, grace and a chance of redemption. Whether it is a heated moment with a friend, a coworker, family member, or some random person. The key is not to fixate that we all fail, but that we all can RISE and strive to do better. Without the rise, failure wins forever.
As a source to your claim - I would like to clarify this assumption:

I am glad you define the term "failuristic" - only because it is not where I am coming from. Understanding the "unvarnished" truth about something is not fixating on one's failure - in this case Sul Ross. I don't need to re-hatch all that LSR did to achieve the mythic status he held and still holds in Aggieland.

I am informed by my faith in all things - this is about truth. I could quote chapter and verse, but even a casual reader of scripture knows the one about "Ye shall know the truth.." In the end, it will be about freedom. From all that I have seen and read on this - some of us have lifted Sul Ross to a higher plane. It's almost as some one just wrote here - that moving the statue is destroying all that TAMU stands for. Say that out loud to a non-Aggie.

To me - TAMU will always be more than a statue. It has and will always be about us.

+pablo




Freedom from what exactly? Freedom from knowing that a man who perhaps made mistakes chose to become a better man and serve those around him selflessly?

The fact that people have a tendency to idolize and hero worship isn't a fault of the statue it is a fault of man. Almost every person in history can be torn down. From Paul to Peter (in the bible), to Rev. Martin Luther and Martin Luther King Jr. to Ghandi and Abraham Lincoln. There are parts in a persons past that show that they are sinners and thus fail to live up to the Law (the hurdle) that has been placed in our hearts. So when one looks at Sul Ross they don't see a man without blemish they see a man that lived a flawed and tough life but as he aged used his position to enact real good in the world. So that when you look at Sul Ross you aren't inspired to join the confederacy, you are inspired to learn from your own past mistakes and improve to bring about positive change.

That is a message of hope and something i think all Aggies should strive for: learn from your (and others) past mistakes and strive to improve the world as you can.
S.A. Aggie
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Not another dime.
P.H. Dexippus
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https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/2b2a/d220046f68514578820cb5fbf1383cac3c32.pdf



TexAgs91
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OldArmy71 said:

A huge amount of that "argument" is that even though Sul Ross did not own slaves, Ross' family owned slaves and therefore he is guilty by association.
Now do Mond's family
I identify as Ultra-MAGA
geoag58
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PabloSerna said:

Tanya 93 said:

PabloSerna said:

No - a few bad apples.

I read a recent article in ESPN by students at the University of Mississippi that changed my mind. Basically, its about the future and what a place like TAMU can be - to the next generation of Texans.

Texas is changing right before our eyes.

+pablo

Is it for the good?

I don't think A&M changing the way it is right now is for the good.

And I was someone who spent 4 years protesting things on that campus.

But we never wanted to change the actual goodness Aggies had towards each other.
The hate and life destruction from people who support what you support was never a goal. I could be the only chick and only non-Republican and non Corps member in a Poli Sci class and never have a worry. They would walk me to my truck after hours of working on group projects.

Trying to harm my future because I voted for Bill Clinton was dishonorable. It never would have crossed their minds.

These asshats now think nothing about it and then cry when someone else gives the same treatment.

Moving Sully means it is gone from campus. You want to play a character on 16 without realizing the hate and awfulness name caller and Keebler Elf have. He can't stay anywhere on campus. Are you coming Sunday to protest with them? Maybe you can see exactly how ugly and hateful and awful these demons are.
Character? My name is on everything I write. That is about as honest as I can be with y'all.

I have been to the protests and have spoken to the students. From where I stand, the truth is somewhere in the middle. I'm not sure who this elf is you are reffering to, but I suspect the good professor? To me, he is doing what professors do - they challenge you. For some of us - we will dig in. For others - maybe that's me, I did not know - and that is where we take it from there. I believe LSR needs a new spot with more context.

A&M is changing. Mainly because the people of Texas are changing. Look at the public schools. I filled out our census and let's see where the chips fall. I have a feeling - the A&M you and I attended will be more multi-cultural down the road. Some here would say - for the worse? I have more hope in the younger generation, maybe because I work with a lot of youth in the Bastrop area and have my own kids heading to college.


+pablo





What you have written here lets me know that in your time on campus you missed the entire point of what it means to be an Aggie. And I don't know what is happening on our campus now but there are current students who are not learning what it means to be an Aggie.

Texas A&M is about transformation, taking the student no matter their race, gender where they came from or even where they are going and creating something different than you will find anywhere else on this planet. An Aggie, and only an Aggie will understand this.

There is a need for a place like Texas A&M University in our country and our world. Aggies have NEVER tried to be like every one else. It is a shame that you spent so much time here, and from what you wrote, never came to understand that. The misguided people who hired young never got it either. If they had they would never have hired someone like young.

It is time for all Aggies everywhere to stand up and tell them the truth. That Aggies are not racists and WE WILL celebrate where we came from and after that WE WILL chart our own course, as Aggies, unbeholden to anyone else.

Gig'em!

 
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